White House drug policy adviser plans talk in Taunton on Feb. 24

U.S. Sen. Edward Markey is set to join President Barack Obama's drug czar in Massachusetts to discuss ways of curbing fatalities caused by prescription drug abuse and an epidemic of heroin deaths this year.

U.S. Sen. Edward Markey is set to join President Barack Obama’s drug czar in Massachusetts to discuss ways of curbing fatalities caused by prescription drug abuse and an epidemic of heroin deaths this year.

Markey and R. Gil Kerlikowske, director of the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy, will be in Taunton on Monday to discuss methods that have proven effective in combating drug-abuse fatalities.

Instead of continuing to focus on solutions through law enforcement, Kerlikowske’s office is pushing for expanding access to drug treatment and providing naloxone, an anti-overdose drug.

Kerlikowske’s office is also emphasizing treating addiction as a brain disease. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers prescription drug abuse to be an epidemic.

Local leaders, first responders and treatment providers will join Markey and Kerlikowske at the discussion.